Portable and collapsible clothes drier receptacle

ABSTRACT

A portable and collapsible clothes drier receptacle mounted on a foldable frame and adapted for attachment to a heater-blower unit.

United States Patent Harry Brahm P.0. Box 372, Riverside Station, Miami,Fla. 33135 Feb. 18, 1969 May 4, 1971 Inventor Appl. No. Filed PatentedPORTABLE AND COLLAPSIBLE CLOTHES DRIER RECEPTACLE 4 Claims, 3 DrawingFigs.

us. Cl 34/151, 34/233 Int. Cl F26b 19/00 FieldotSearch 34/151, 163, 225,233

References Cited UNlTED STATES PATENTS 7/1947 Drewes 34/233 2/1955Strongson... 34/ 151 3/1961 Weber 34/151 8/1966 Moore.... 34/151 11/1966Hope 34/233X 3/ 1969 Eichholz 34/15 1 FOREIGN PATENTS 7/1960 France34/15 1 Primary Examiner-Charles J. Myhre AttorneyF red L. Witherspoon,.Ir.

ABSTRACT: A portable and collapsible clothes drier receptacle mounted ona foldable frame and adapted for attachment to a heater-blower unit.

PATENTED mw 41971 I INVENTOR HA my BRAHM 4r ORNKQ PQRTABLEANDCOLLAPSIBLE CLOTHES DRIER yRECIIP'IACLE BAcxGRouNb or INVENTION SUMMARYOF THE INVENTION It is an object of this invention to provide a drierreceptacle a conventional hair dryer.

It is another object of this invention to provide a drier receptacleassembly' which is collapsible into a very small compact unit for easyportability. I

It is yet another, object of this invention to provide a drierreceptacle assembly made of inexpensive yet sturdy materials to affordthe desired results withoutundue cost.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide a portable andcollapsible clothes drier receptacle assembly adapted to be operativelyconnected to a heater-blower unit, said drier receptacle assemblycomprising a flexible .rectangularly shaped closed receptacle having atop, bottom, end and sidewalls, an access flap portion formed in thereceptacle top, means for fastening the free edges of the flap portionto said top, said receptacle being provided with a plurality of exhaustopenings, reinforcing and supporting seams affixed to and transverselyof the upper inner-portion of each end wall, flexible lines connected toand extending between said reinforcing and supporting means, airdistributing means positioned in the receptacle, air intake meansconnected to the air distributing means and extending through a portionof the receptacle to provide an outside connection to which aheater-blower unit may be attached tofurnish hot dry air to the airdistributing means and means for supporting the receptacle in erectedoperative position.

Other objects and advantages will become more apparent when consideredin conjunction with the following detailed description and drawing,showing by way of example several embodiments of this invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. I is a perspective view of thepreferred embodiment of this invention in assembled position ready foruse;

FIG. 2 is a partial view in perspective illustrating an alternativemanifold arrangement, and v FIG. 3 is a partial view in perspectiveshowing yet another alternative manifold arrangement.

As illustrated in FIG. 1 of the drawings, the portable drier unitcomprises a foldable frame assembly 12 including a having parallel legs18 and 20 and 22 and'24 respectively. Parallel legs 18 and 20 areconnected by a horizontal member 26 while legs 22 and 24 are bridged byhorizontal member 28. The U-shpaed supports 14 and 16 are crossedintermediate their leg lengths and pivotally connected at their point ofinapertures 58 for the exiting-of the moisture laden air from assemblyadapted to cooperate with the heater-blower unit of within thereceptacle.

A reinforcing'and support bar 60 is positioned within the receptacle 40and secured to the upper inner face of each of the end walls 46 and 48.These bars 60 act as the support for lines 62 which serve as clotheslines for the receptacle. Both upper transverseedges of the receptaclehave a mounting flap 64 secured thereto. The free end of the flap 64 ispassed over the respective horizontal members 26 and 28 of the U-shapedsupports and secured to adjacent bar 60 by means of fasteners 66 Thereceptacle bottom 42 has a manifold 70 positioned on its inner facegenerally-throughout the length of the bottom. This manifold 70 issemicircular in cross section and has a plurality of holes 72 throughwhich hot air is introduced into the receptacle. The end of the manifold70 contiguous toend wall 48 is closed while the other end is open andconnected to intake plate 74 secured to end wall 46. A nipple 76 extendsfrom the plate 74 on the outside of the wall 46 and receives a flexibleconduit 78 which-in turn is connected to heater-blower unit 80.

It is believed that the operation and use of the unit iS reasonablyapparent in view of the foregoing description. Even'so, a briefdescription follows. With the portable drier .unit 10 in erectedposition, as illustrated in FIG. 1', the zipper 56 is operated to freeflap portion 54 whereupon the items to be dried are hung on lines 62provided for thispurpose. After the receptacle is filled, the zipper isagain pulled to close the top 44. Next, the heater-blower unit 80 isstarted and hot dry air is forced through conduit 78 into manifold 70arid out through holes 72. The moisture laden air is exhausted throughapertures 58 in the flap portion 54. As soon as the items within thereceptacle are dry, they may be removed.

' pair of U-shaped supports 14 andl6, said U-shaped supports tersectionby means of pivot pin 30. The free ends of the legs I8, 20, 22 and 24mount swivel caster 32 to provide easy mobetween legs 18 and 22 tomaintain the frame assembly in erected position.

The folding frame assembly 12 supports a collapsible clothes drierreceptacle 40 which is generally rectangular in shape having a bottom42, top 44, end walls 46 and 48 and sidewalls 50 and 52. Plasticmaterial is quite advantageously used for the receptacle, particularlythe types which are readily heat scalable. The top 44 is provided with aflap portion 54 whose three sides are secured to the top by means of azipper 56. The flap portion 54 is provided with a plurality of exhaustIt is contemplated that the manifold 70 of FIG. I may be modified, andin this connection, attention is directed to FIG. 2 wherein the'drierreceptacle is provided with a flexible manifoldlike cover 92 extendingover the entire bottom of the receptacle in spaced relation thereto toprovide a hot air chamber 94. The cover 92 has a plurality of evenlyspaced holes 96 over its entire surface for the discharge of hot dry airinto the receptacle. The same type intake plate 98, as in FIG. I, isused in this embodiment.

Yet another modification is shown in FIG. 3 wherein a different manifoldarrangement is depicted. In this embodiment, the manifold comprises aflexible rectangularly shaped tube 100 secured around the upper innerportion of the drier receptacle 102. The exposed inner face of thetubular manifold 100 has a plurality of hot air feed holes 104 fordirecting the hot dry air into the upper portion of the drierreceptacle. The usual conduit plate 106 is provided to feed the hot airfrom the heater-blower unit to the manifold 100. Obviously, thedischarge openings in this embodiment would be located in the bottom ofthe drier receptacle.

In all of the constructions illustrated and described, use of atransparent heat scalable plastic for the drier receptacle is quiteadvantageous. The supporting frame assembly can be made of aluminum,stainless steel or even other materials depending mainly on costfactors. The heater-blower unit may be of the type usually associatedwith portable hair drier units although other types of heater-blowerunits could obviously be employed.

Many conventional additions could be made to the basic units asdescribed above. For example, means can be provided to communicate withthe entering hot air to introduce a scent into the drier receptacle.Further, an ultraviolet light could be positioned within the drierreceptacle to deodorize and purify the air and items in the receptacle.

I claim:

1. A portable and collapsible clothes drier receptacle assembly adaptedto be opcrativcly connected to a heaterblower unit, said drierreceptacle assembly comprising a flexible rectangularly shaped closedreceptacle having a top, bottom, end and sidewalls,'an access flapportion formed in the receptacle top, means for'fastening the free edgesof th'e'flap secured to each other, the closed ends of said U-shapedsupporting members being connected to the mounting flaps to freelysupport the clothes drier completely from the outside, air distributingmeans positioned in the receptacle, and air intending through a portionof the receptacle to provide an outside connection to which aheater-blower unit may be attached to furnish hot dry air to the airdistributing means.

2. The invention as-described in claim 1 and wherein the airdistributing means in the receptacle comprises a longitudinallyextending manifold tube of flexible material secured to the take meansconnected to the air distributing means and exreceptacle bottom, one endof the manifold tube is closed and the other end being connected to theair intake means, said manifold tube having a plurality of holes throughwhich 'hot dry air is passed into the receptacle.

3. The invention as described in claim 1 and wherein the airdistributing means in the receptacle comprises a flexible sheetextending completely over the bottom and in spaced relation thereto toform a manifold chamber, said manifold chamber being connected to theair intake means, the flexible sheet being provided with a plurality ofholes for passing hot dry air into the receptacle.

4. The invention as described in claim 1 and wherein the airdistributing means positioned in the receptacle comprises a tubularmanifold extending around the inside of the receptacle,

said manifold having a plurality of openings for directing the hot dryair into the receptacle, the tubular manifold being connected to the airintake means, and the exhaust openings in the receptacle being locatedremotely from the manifold.

1. A portable and collapsible clothes drier receptacle assembly adaptedto be operatively connected to a heater-blower unit, said drierreceptacle assembly comprising a flexible rectangularly shaped closedreceptacle having a top, bottom, end and sidewalls, an access flapportion formed in the receptacle top, means for fastening the free edgesof the flap portion to said top, said receptacle being provided with aplurality of exhaust openings, a reinforcing bar affixed to andtransversely of the upper inner portion of each end wall, flexible linesconnected to and extending between said bars, a mounting flap connectedto and extending upwardly from the transverse upper outer edge of eachend wall, a pair of U-shaped supporting members having crossed legspivotally secured to each other, the closed ends of said Ushapedsupporting members being connected to the mounting flaps to freelysupport the clothes drier completely from the outside, air distributingmeans positioned in the receptacle, and air intake means connected tothe air distributing means and extending through a portion of thereceptacle to provide an outside connection to which a heater-blowerunit may be attached to furnish hot dry air to the air distributingmeans.
 2. The invention as described in claim 1 and wherein the airdistributing means in the receptacle comprises a longitudinallyextending manifold tube of flexible material secured to the receptaclebottom, one end of the manifold tube is closed and the other end beingconnected to the air intake means, said manifold tube having a pluralityof holes through which hot dry air is passed into the receptacle.
 3. Theinvention as described in claim 1 and wherein the air distributing meansin the receptacle comprises a flexible sheet extending completely overthe bottom and in spaced relation thereto to form a manifold chamber,said manifold chamber being connected to the air intake means, theflexible sheet being provided with a plurality of holes for passing hotdry air into the receptacle.
 4. The invention as described in claim 1and wherein the air distributing means positioned in the receptaclecomprises a tubular manifold extending around the inside of thereceptacle, said manifold having a plurality of openings for directingthe hot dry air into the receptacle, the tubular manifold beingconnected to the air intake means, and the exhaust openings in thereceptacle being located remotely from the manifold.